The Black Sisters
by Arysthae
Summary: It was like a fairytale, the three sisters different in looks but all joined by their love of family. Because who doesn't want to know their deepest darkest secrets?


**The Black Sisters**

_Because when Andromeda looks back, they had started out the same..._

It was like a fairy tale. The three sisters, different in looks but all joined by their love for family.

The eldest, Bellatrix, dark and mysterious, the Amazonian warrior, with an intensity of sorts and a pride in being pure; cunning, manipulative and even as a child, just a slight bit insane.

The middle child. Andromeda. The beautiful princess rescued by Perseus from the monster, but Andromeda was not beautiful. Not plain, after all; a Black was never plain, but not with the beauty that was emitted by her sisters. Andromeda was clever, with a memory like a sponge absorbing every last detail of everything.

And the youngest, Narcissa, fair and cold, obsessed with her looks, like the boy from the story she was named for. She was perhaps the most mysterious of them all, learning from their great-aunt Cassiopeia, as vain and as cruel as her namesake.

They had been similar, all desperately looking up to their peers and elders, seeking advice from the paintings and attending parties amidst learning pureblood etiquette and lessons about magic. But they were different.

Bellatrix sought to be with her elders, always the favoured one, the eldest child, taken everywhere by their father, to every pureblood propaganda rally, every party at her parents side, learning things she shouldn't have known at such a young age. Andromeda wondered in her old age whether that might have been one of the many reasons for her twisted sense of the world.

Andromeda had preferred to talk with her two cousins, Sirius and Regulus, both with rather uncorrupted minds, who only worried about the present. She, like them, admired their Uncle Alphard, though probably not for the same reasons that they had. She admired him for the courage to break free from the stereotype of Blacks as evil people, admired him for the strength of will to laugh in the face of the imminent war, quite so easily. Andromeda in the end had been the most accepting of people that were different.

Narcissa had sought to be with her peers, chatting about things that normal girls did and even with the amazing mind and skills she had, she close to hide them behind a veil of ignorance and vanity. She spent her time like a teenage girl, talking about boys, clothes and hair styles. Andromeda had envied her ignorance, her ability to forget or ignore. Andromeda was an open book, not a typical Slytherin like her parents wished her to be.

_People often talked about Bellatrix as a crazy bitch who deserved to die. Andromeda had cried when she had heard. She knew that Bella had been evil, and that she probably had deserved to die, but she couldn't get the image of the girl who'd protected her from bullies for most of her life, out of her mind._

Bellatrix became her namesake. The strong, mighty, powerful leader in magic. She had been sorted into Slytherin with no surprise to anyone. On her first day of lessons, she had impressed all of the teachers she had had with her talent in magic. Slytherin or not, Bellatrix had been surprisingly smart and so was successful. Of course, she didn't show off her knowledge or flaunted it, merely used when she needed it.

Andromeda did admit to herself, even as a teenager, Bella had been slightly sadistic when people got in the way of her schemes or fun, especially when they were younger and from Hufflepuff or Gryffindor. She had always been that little bit crueler to Sirius and his gang too.

Bellatrix's ideas of good company were the typical blood purist families. Rodulphus and Rabastan LeStrange, Lucius Malfoy, Ian Crabbe and Martin Goyle, Timothy Yaxley, Antonin Dolohov, Evan Rosier and Jonathon Mulciber and Severus Snape were many examples that Andromeda knew of anyway. Andromeda had never liked them but grudgingly walked past them daily and in return, they left her alone and protected her from bullies from other houses like the Smiths from Hufflepuff.

Three years after Bellatrix had gone to Hogwarts, Andromeda followed. Andromeda had had the qualities of a great Gryffindor, the hat had said but she begged and begged and finally she was placed in Slytherin with a warning that she wouldn't be happy with it. Andromeda, of course, already knew this but being put in Gryffindor would have been the utmost last straw for any kind of family dynamic.

Andromeda stayed quiet, she would have been more suited to Ravenclaw; she knew, but only Slytherin would satisfy her mother and father. She preferred to be alone and would only ever spend time with her roommate Melanie Davis and when he arrived, her slightly more secretive cousin Regulus. Andromeda's hold over magic wasn't impressive but it never lacked, she was average, as usual. The only thing that seemed to appeal to her was Potions and Herbology, both subjects where she was happy at. She often spent time with the matron, Madame Ruella from France and liked to spend time learning how to make people better, to shy away from the Black reputation of pain.

Two years later, along with Regulus, Narcissa Black entered Hogwarts with her seductive looks. Her body attracted all the male teachers and her classmates and her cold attitude seemed to have them drooling at her feet. Where she walked, people followed but poison flew out her mouth with a disguise of honey. Narcissa was a gossiper and rumour-mongerer and was a less-frequent member of the Slytherin gang, often more subtle than Bellatrix, choosing to spend her time with Carthusa Moon and Mary Parkinson, filling her head with fluff. Her best subjects were Charms and Astronomy, two things she had been raised with since birth.

_Andromeda had always agreed with Narcissa Malfoy's stereotypes. She was shallow and vain, years immersing herself in it had reduced her to that, but Andromeda had been surprised to find herself crying when Harry Potter, when collecting her young grandson, retold the story of how Narcissa had saved his life with her love for Draco._

When Bellatrix was made Head Girl, Tom Riddle had approached their gang of purebloods. With his charming looks and slightly darker ways, Bellatrix was deeply attracted to him. She believed they were so similar that he would love her and marry her and they would kill mudbloods and be happy forever. Andromeda had seen the truth behind the charm but Bellatrix was happier than she had ever been in years and would not stop talking about the charming young man called Thomas Riddle.

Andromeda, after meeting Thomas Riddle with Bellatrix's pleadings, and being deeply frightened by his smile and the cold eyes that flashed red when his temper shifted, ran. She ran past everyone, running to the hospital wing, through Hogsmeade and the cold snow. It was then she had bumped into a dashing muggleborn Hufflepuff called Ted Tonks and her perspective of the world changed forever. She hadn't stopped thinking about him for days, musing and thinking and running into him whenever she could just to catch a glimpse of his smile when she realized she was in love with him. They had started dating in secret and he showed her how cultured and civilized and far ahead in technology muggles were. In return, she showed him the showy cultures, traditions and manners of pureblood life. Andromeda was truly blissful and floating on top of her standards of life.

Narcissa was probably the least happy at this stage in her life; people laughed at her wherever she went due to a horrific practical joke played on her by Sirius and his gang. They had made her hair fall out, her lovely long blonde hair which she couldn't get to grow back again, no matter what charms she or the teachers used. This was after she had spread one too many rumours about Remus Lupin and his disturbed appearance and disappearance every now and then. Narcissa though had learnt a valuable lesson about taking care about how vitriol she spewed because the consequence could be huge.

_Andromeda loved Teddy because he reminded of Ted. His smile was just the same as Ted's, though it didn't always stay the same due to his inheritance of Nymphadora's metamorphing ability. But she loved him just the same. Andromeda only wished both her sisters could have got to know him. She was sure they would have grudgingly respected Ted if their secret hadn't been spilled so early._

Bellatrix graduated from school and went into Law. She applied for a place on the Wizengamot and due to the pureblood bias; she got in easily. She also applied for the Death Eaters, the pureblood propaganda group that was quickly taking action against the threat of Mudbloods against society. Andromeda could vaguely remember Bellatrix going round, flaunting her place in Thomas Riddle's society. Or as he was called by then; Lord Voldemort. His ideas spread fast, and not just because they were already implanted in society. He was a charmer and a persuasive speaker but his handsome looks were rapidly diminishing, he seemed to get uglier each time Andromeda caught a glimpse of the mysterious man. But Bellatrix loved him still for his passion and the darker, more powerful spells he used that touched a glimpse upon his authority. Andromeda was sickened by the violence and his ideas.

Andromeda on the other hand was deeply falling in love with new Head Boy, Ted Tonks and when, Ted proposed marriage to her because he loved her so much, he couldn't stop thinking about her; she said yes, not considering the consequences for a minute because she felt exactly the same. Had she known the rift between her and her family would be so great and that her first years working part-time at St. Mungo's and nursing a screaming, morphing baby would be so difficult, she might have paused and waited or, at least checked that no one was listening. But Andromeda was head over heels in love and slipped on the ring like a fool without a thought to the consequences.

And who should be listening but the wily youngest sister Narcissa Black? Her life was finally looking up. Older, cleverer and more influential Lucius Malfoy was showing interest in her and her looks. He seemed to understand her and Narcissa had always had a thing for older men. And now, she would be able to gain more favour with her family for revealing the secret. She told them, of course, as soon as she could with a quickly dispatched owl before the Christmas holidays. Taunting and teasing Andromeda with hints that she had discovered something important, Narcissa cared nothing for feelings or love, and, what could poor, unenlightened Andromeda do against young, beautiful, influential because of Lucius, Slytherin prefect Narcissa Black?

_Andromeda had named Nymphadora after the Greek term, for she had been the greatest gift Ted had given her, but a slight part of Andromeda wanted her to remember her past, and the family she came from. Not all the Black's were bad, Alphard, Regulus and Sirius were huge reliefs in her younger life. Even if they had thrown her out, they were still family. Who knows, in the future, one day, maybe, she and Nymphadora would be proud to hail their roots from the once prestigious Blacks. _

Bellatrix now spent most of her time with Voldemort, she had quickly gained ranks amongst the Death Eaters to one in the inner circle. She had been proposed marriage by Rodolpus Lestrange, one of her old friends. She knew it was not for love, but for influence with the rest of the Wizarding world, who had not joined their ranks. They would someday though, Bellatrix was determined of that. And her horror to realise one of her own family, her younger sister who she had doted in younger years had been corrupted by a filthy mudblood? Her fury had been undeniable in front of her family during the confrontation at Christmas when Andromeda had ran away. But no one had seen Bellatrix desperately plead Andromeda to stay, to leave the mudblood and be a Black. Andromeda had refused of course, and broke part of Bellatrix's mind that day. That was when she reached her most ruthless, determined to wipe out as many filthy mudbloods and muggles as she could.

Andromeda ran away as far as she could, to stay with Ted and his family that Christmas. There was no contact with the rest of them apart from a short phrase from Regulus with 2 words, 'You're disowned.' She had cared but never let it bother her that she had no money, no proper home and no family to turn to. Ted's family had been kind, but she could tell that they disapproved.

She had joined St Mungo's, an occupation she had wanted to do for a long time ands got directly involved with the war for the next two or three years. She treated injuries from Bellatrix and Thomas Riddle himself and spent a lot of her time curse-breaking particularly nasty spells. She had been extended many offers from Professor Dumbledore to join his group against darkness and evil, The Order of the Phoenix, but Andromeda felt it was too little, too late that Dumbledore addressed this issue and politely refused under the terms of her daughter.

Narcissa, to no surprise was not Head Girl in her last year, despite much secret yearning. She was finally tired of the vacant, ditzy guise and it was increasingly difficult to shed it, especially as the war rapidly approached and Voldemort was taking his time approving her entry into the Death Eaters to follow in the footsteps of most of her family.

However, Lucius then proposed marriage in her 7th year and she had accepted immediately and when she left school, they were married with great pomp. She was never accepted into the Death Eaters and in later life would be very happy that she had never received the Mark.

She had however passed all of her NEWTs with Outstandings, much to the surprise of everyone who wasn't great-aunt Cassiopeia. Narcissa joined the spell investigators in the Ministry of Magic, creating new charms and raising awareness to them. This didn't particularly appeal to Narcissa, but it was a ridiculously high paying job, especially since it meant she could leak Ministry secrets to the Death Eaters. But she soon quit this job after old Cassiopeia died, leaving Narcissa all of her money.

_Andromeda had and would always be a great supporter of not ostracising all of Slytherin house for the actions of few. Like Draco had told her, the sorting hat preached unity to win, but the wizarding world was not yet united, so Andromeda classed the war as not yet over. Cutting the head of the Snake, as literally as it could be taken, in this instance would not solve all of their problems. _

The day after Voldemort was proclaimed dead, Bellatrix hadn't believed it. She had searched everywhere, physically and magically for his presence and had not detected it. She knew, in his last days, he had been researching the Longbottoms and the Potters. The Potters were eliminated so that left the Longbottoms. She, her husband, his brother and her husbands' brother's lover had gone to the house and brutally torn down the defences and tortured them for information. They had not known and their expedition was all for nought as they were all taken to Azkaban for their crime and sentenced to 15 long, painful years in jail.

Andromeda hadn't rejoiced like the rest of the world had that night it was announced that Tom Riddle was dead. She knew a family had been broken for this to happen and she knew, that the war would not be over, a fact that Albus Dumbledore seemed to share. That week, she had kept her family indoors despite all of their objections. She only let them have their freedom once more after Bellatrix was imprisoned and the other fanatics were dead or disappeared.

Her job was cut by the staff at St Mungo's who needed her no longer and she looked after her daughter Nymphadora until she was old enough to go to Hogwarts. Once she had left, Andromeda put into action a plan that had been wiling away those years of inactiveness, of starting a successful potions and potion ingredients business, like Slug and Jiggers. It had been her best subject along with Defence over the years. Ted had been working at a muggle TV centre, reporting weather and important news stories for the BBC.

Narcissa had been pregnant with Draco and year and a month before the defeat of Voldemort and she had not liked it one little bit. But once he had been born, a part of Narcissa's guard melted away as if it had never existed. The little crying ball of red and pink and stolen Narcissa's heart and made her feel something for the first time. She had loved the child and had lost all interest in anything else. She had begged Lucius to leave the Death Eaters, but he hadn't wanted to. When the Dark Lord fell though, it was all too easy to persuade Lucius into pretending to be imperiused. She had quit her job to look after Draco, and though she never served menial tasks like feeding or changing nappies, she was always there when he was crying or when he needed to play. Narcissa...had changed.

_Andromeda had heard stories of Horcruxes, she had to, living in her family. They were very dark items, but Bellatrix used to boast about knowing the ritual to make one. Andromeda however had at once known that Bellatrix hadn't actually made horcruxes. So she had been shocked when Harry informed her that Voldemort had made six horcruxes, the seventh, Harry himself, known only by Dumbledore himself. She'd always thought Albus was an old manipulative bastard. _

Bellatrix's life had been renewed when Voldemort freed her at around Christmas time in 1995. She had gotten her chance at life again, and her chance at love again. She was much madder and had lost the calculative nature that had won her, her place in the Inner Circle.

She was loyal though; more loyal than anyone in the Death Eaters so had been shocked when Voldemort had severely punished her and Lucius for her failure at the Department of Mysteries against Potter and Dumbledore. But she had taken particular relish in murdering her foul cousin Sirius Black and twisting the Longbottom boy's mind and torturing the poor ickle Potter boy.

1996 came and Bellatrix murdered and killed muggles and wizards alike. She had taken particular relish in the Bones murder, Amelia Bones was one of the reasons she had to hide; Bones was one of the only uncorrupt people at the ministry. She had enjoyed invading her old school with Draco and watching Dumbledore, the old coot die. Bellatrix felt...gleeful.

Andromeda watched with bated breath as her daughter got sucked into Albus's little mind games. She had warned her against it, but of course, Nymphadora remained as rebellious as she was as a teenager and did exactly the opposite of what Andromeda had suggested. It was here, Andromeda watched her daughter fall in love with Remus Lupin, one of Sirius's old friends and privately, she felt he was far too old. But who was she to judge true love?

Her potions business thrived and she urged Ted to quit the muggle TV job and he did for her. The day after he quit, news came in of an attack there. No one had lived.

Andromeda felt the old tensions of the war rise again and against her better judgement, she too joined Albus's mind-games as a covert agent. Ted was active agent as he felt he could no longer sit and home and hide. Andromeda felt...proud.

Narcissa watched her son grow up to be a copy of his father. At first, that seemed like a good thing, but as he went on to make enemies with people she knew would grow up to be very influential, she winced and wished he had gained his mother's radar senses of who to break and who not to.

Over the years, she felt her heart break each time Draco came home complaining about Potter and spouting death eater morals.

Voldemort returned. As they knew he would. He chastised the Malfoy's for their ill faith, but the fact remained, they were the most influential. Until Lucius messed up the Department of Mysteries. Then, things had gone horribly wrong.

And that day, when Voldemort had come to their house and asked for Draco to be his youngest Death Eater, Narcissa had cried herself to sleep. For once, she felt...helpless.

_Andromeda did wonder as she watched Teddy grow up and leave to Hogwarts for the first time, reminding her utterly of Nymphadora and her family, whose fault it was that the three young girls with so much potential ultimately failed in everything that mattered. Was it their parents' fault? Their own faults? Or was it just fate with her cruel grudge?_

That last year of domination had been good for Bellatrix. She killed for him and he let her stay by his side to sate his mortal needs. She was his most favoured she knew, he just needed them to believe it was Severus. Because really, Severus was still as much of a wimp as he had been in school days.

It had been good until that day, when news reached them of the break-in at Gringotts, to HER vault! And a small golden cup had been stolen.

Voldemort had been furious and had disappeared for hours on end and came back in a horrible mood and called for all of their armies to gather at Hogwarts. The Final Battle approached.

He did not confide in Bellatrix. This didn't sit well with her. If she was his most favoured, why did he confide in Lucius and Severus and not her? She clung to him for as long as she could, and when the Potter boy died, she thought life would continue with her at his side. But he came back and the fighting started again.

And that stupid Weasley bitch started fighting her and she though it would be a short match—and in one breath, with a crazy smile, Bellatrix died. A life extinguished in two words. It was fitting really.

Andromeda had not been at the final battle and she regretted it. Maybe she would have been able to save her daughter and her daughter's husband. But she hadn't and they died like Ted died, alone in the cold wet mud. It had hurt, losing all her family in one month. All she had left was Teddy and she had to share him with Harry who had gained everything.

She looked after Teddy, raised him like she raised Nymphadora and he grew to be a good man.

Narcissa watched Draco mature that year. He hadn't confirmed that it was Potter when it was so very obvious, even to her. He wasn't like his father in that aspect. And in the Final Battle, that had been reason she hadn't betrayed anything to the Dark Lord about Potter. She had reason to save him where there had been no reason to save Lucius, and most of all, for him to save himself. He grew, he married and had a son. She told Draco to raise Scorpius to be a good man. A man untainted by dark Magic and dark influences. It wouldn't work, she knew, everyone was tempted, but she hoped, perhaps if he was raised well, he would be able to refuse and go to Gryffindor and escape his reputation.

_When Andromeda was old, when she was 100 years to be exact, she called her younger sister to her and they talked. They talked of their loves, fears and hopes for the future generation. And most of all, they became sisters, for one moment. For one moment, blood was thick than water. She and Narcissa headed up Andromeda's Potions Company and when Narcissa finally died at the age of 107, Andromeda continued alone. Always alone, she noted, she started alone and ended alone. The consummate survivor. Everyone she truly loved were on the other side. So when death came to Andromeda, she embraced him like an old friend and they walked away into the distance together._


End file.
